Officials believe the suspect Ricco Jackson did not act alone.
Officials believe the suspect Ricco Jackson did not act alone. For weeks, authorities have been investigating after nearly 50 people in Napa mailed property tax checks totaling $1.5 million that never reached the tax collector.
One man connected to the scheme is now in custody.
"Oh, it was, it really was relief. These are Napa County taxpayers. They are the lifeblood of our county," said Napa County Tax Collector Bob Minahen. RELATED:Authorities now say Ricco Jackson has been charged with felony fraudulent schemes and artifices.
According to court documents, Jackson set up a fake LLC in Phoenix and cashed stolen property tax checks from five Napa residents totaling about $103,000. Jackson is scheduled to go on trial in August in Phoenix.
"I think you have somebody locally who's doing the stealing, somebody within the Bay Area between the Oakland post office, postal facility processing, and our office. And, they're then disseminating these stolen checks throughout the country," he said. Authorities say stolen checks tied to the scheme have been deposited in multiple states, including Georgia, Florida and North Carolina.
"Hopefully, as we get closer and closer to identifying, where these checks are being stolen, people are getting more and more nervous," he said. Taxpayers flood Napa Co. Tax Collector's Office after payments vanish in check fraud schemeTo prevent similar incidents, the tax collector's office has changed the color of its collection envelopes and is encouraging residents to use online payment options.
"Check washing is now one of the top, fraud models that is being exercised throughout the country. So electronic payments, in a secure setting, is the way to go," Minahen said. A wave of Bay Area property tax checks were stolen. Here's how to protect your paper check payments Our ABC7 Eyewitness News data team found a sharp rise in check fraud reports across the Bay Area, increasing 96.5% between 2020 and 2025.
The FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are continuing to investigate how the checks were stolen and whether additional suspects were involved. Take a look at more stories and videos by7OYS's consumer hotline is a free consumer mediation service for those in the San Francisco Bay Area. We assist individuals with consumer-related issues; we cannot assist on cases between businesses, or cases involving family law, criminal matters, landlord/tenant disputes, labor issues, or medical issues..
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